Sabbath Meditation #10 – Hearing The Voice of God
by Kelly McDonald, Jr
“22 Then she called to her husband, and said, “Please send me one of the young men and one of the donkeys, that I may run to the man of God and come back.” 23 So he said, “Why are you going to him today? It is neither the New Moon nor the Sabbath.” And she said, “It is well.” (2 Kings 4:22-23, NKJV).
“Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know” (Jeremiah 33:3).
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:27).
“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches…” (Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 29. 3:6, 13, 22).
“So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read” (Luke 4:16).
In our world, there are many voices. Paul wrote: “There are, it may be, so many kinds of sounds in the world, and none of them is without meaning” (I Corinthians 14:10, KJV). There are the voices of people around us. Satan has a voice that he uses to communicate to people. He tried to tempt Jesus in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11). He even spoke through Peter to influence Jesus (Matthew 16:22-23). We also have to consider our own personal thoughts (Psalm 94:11). Last, but not least, God speaks to us. Jesus said “My sheep hear my voice.”
Have you ever heard the voice of God? I can’t say that I know anyone who has heard His audible voice. At the same time, the Bible has a recurring theme that God can speak to us.
In 2 Kings 4, a widow woman was in deep distress. God gave her a son, but he died. She immediately wanted to go see Elisha, the prophet of God. Before she went to him, her husband made a fascinating statement. He said, “Why are you going to him today? It is neither the New Moon nor the Sabbath.”
From this verse, one might gather that prophets were known for delivering special messages from God on the Sabbath. Could it be that God more clearly communicates His express will to us on this day than any other?
In Revelation chapters 2 and 3, Jesus gave John seven letters to seven churches in Asia Minor. Each of these letters has a pattern to it. Our Savior identifies the positive and negative behaviors in each church. He gives special promises to those who overcome. In each letter, He makes the same appeal: “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches…”
Everyone has a physical ear, but not everyone opens their spiritual ears. God has a message for us every Sabbath – a lesson to be learned. When we are positioned by rest, we can receive it. One reason we abstain from work and labor on the Sabbath is to tune out the other voices around us.
Resting on the Sabbath sends a message with our actions. It tells certain voices in this world “NO” and “STOP” – but it opens up our spiritual ears to hear the voice of Christ. He taught on the Sabbath in the Gospels. His voice still teaches us today.
Closing our ears to the world and our vain pursuits will help us better focus on our own spiritual condition. We can just ‘live life’; we can go through the motions; or we can choose to listen and follow our Shepherd. Open your spiritual ears so you can understand the areas in life that please Him and those areas that need improvement.
May we all have an ear to hear the voice of God.
Selah.
Kelly McDonald, Jr, BSA President
The Sabbath Sentinel 